The New Future of Transportation

Magnetic-Levitation (MagLev) rail provides a virtually frictionless way to transport people and goods at high speeds of 300 mph (480 km/h) or more. MagLev trains can be fast, but, they are still trains – they must stop and start often, and stations might be far from passengers’ homes or business. As such, MagLev offers little advantage over conventional steel-wheels-on-rails systems.

Let’s separate “railroad” from “train”, and have individual vehicles that use computer-automated technology to go non-stop from the starting to the destination stations. Each vehicle might transport one passenger, or a small group; or one load of freight, such as the daily delivery to a supermarket.

This would require a fast, probably non-mechanical way of switching vehicles from one rail to another, something that most MagLev systems cannot do because part of the vehicle is wrapped around underneath the rail. In the Danby-Powell system, however, the vehicle has some parts to the side of the rail, but not underneath, so electromagnetic switching is possible, using “virtual rails”. MagLev vehicles can travel in magnetically-linked “convoys” to reduce air resistance.

The “RobotRail” MagLev network can initially be built to handle freight. A tractor-trailer could carry the cargo container for a few miles from the last station to the final destination. How can we do something similar for passengers? In the “LeviCar” system, there will be modular passenger cars, with a car body for passengers and luggage, and a separable road chassis with the motors, power storage, and wheels. The car body is mounted on the chassis for driving around town. After driving to a MagLev station, the body will be removed and mounted on a MagLev “bogie”, then travel at high speed to another station, where it will be remounted an another road chassis just like the one left behind at the first station. Passengers get the speed of air travel without all the hassles.

If chassis are leased to the consumer, the lease price could also include the cost of basic maintenance, and servicing the chassis is as simple as exchanging the ‘old’ chassis for a ‘new’ one. The ‘old’ one will be repaired, and given to another customer. If you can’t bring the car into the repair shop, a service truck can swap the chassis in your driveway, or wherever you happen to be. At first, a chassis could be conventionally powered, but later converted to all-electric drive.

LeviCar could be developed by a horde of inventors, in an open-source network with a blog-like system to keep track of who invented what ideas.

In the future, MagLev could be used to launch space vehicles from earth, or, better yet, from the moon.

In addition to all these benefits, “LeviCar” will be more efficient and greener than what we have today. The initial “RobotRail” network will mean far fewer big rigs on the highway and a lot less pollution. As RobotRail is perfected for safety, bus-sized passenger vehicles can be added, and eventually LeviCars. These would work off of electricity, which can be generated in low-pollution, high-efficiency, stationary power sources. There would be vastly less carbon dioxide and other pollutants, fewer airplane contrails, and less global warming.

It would be irresponsible to introduce such a large technological change without considering the social, economic, and even political ramifications. Yes, LeviCar will eliminate many jobs, and those so displaced will be offered training and alternative employment. Existing automobile and airplane manufacturers would reconvert to make parts of the RobotRail and LeviCar systems.

We are addicted to foreign oil, largely from unstable regions. RobotRail and LeviCar will replace much of our oil-dependent transportation system with clean electricity. This is a win-win for America, Western Civilization, and the World!

Technical People

Short Version

The New Future of Transportation

Magnetic-Levitation (MagLev) trains can be fast, but they’re still trains, stopping often at stations that might be far from you, offering little advantage over steel-wheels-on-rails. Let’s separate “railroad” from “train”. We’ll have individual vehicles use computer-automated technology to travel from the starting MagLev station, non-stop, to the destination station. They can travel in magnetically-linked “convoys” to reduce air resistance.

The “LeviCar” system will use modular passenger cars, with a car body for passengers and luggage, and a separable leased chassis with the motors, power storage, and wheels. The car body is mounted on the chassis for driving around town, but can be removed at a MagLev station, and then travel at high speed to another station, where it will be remounted an another chassis just like the one left behind at the first station. Servicing the chassis is as simple as exchanging the chassis with the leasing company, for a newly-repaired one.

“LeviCar” will displace current inefficient, highly-polluting, oil-dependent vehicles. It will run off of electricity from clean, efficient generators – reducing pollutants, contrails, and greenhouse gases. Existing automobile and airplane manufacturers would reconvert to make parts of the LeviCar system, and displaced workers will be retrained and offered alternative jobs. LeviCar will also alleviate our addiction to foreign oil from unstable regions. This is a win-win for America, Western Civilization, and the World!

Technical People

Summary

The New Future of Transportation

Magnetic-Levitation (MagLev) trains are fast, but share the inflexibility of conventional rail. Instead, individual vehicles could use computer-automated technology to go non-stop from the starting to destination MagLev stations, and travel on roads for the first and last few miles. “LeviCar” will do this with a car body mounted a separable leased chassis. Repair is as simple as exchanging the chassis with the leasing company for a newly-repaired one.

It will also vastly reduce pollutants and greenhouse gases, and alleviate our addiction to foreign oil from unstable regions.

Intro:

“LeviCar” will use MagLev with individually-routed vehicles under computer control, going non-stop between stations. On the road, the car body rides on a leased chassis. Electric power means less pollution, and no oil addiction.

All-Electric Transportation System

Current transportation systems are highly dependent on petroleum-derived liquid fuels – gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel. We are addicted to oil – much of it from unstable foreign regions. Burning this fuel also contributes to pollution and global warming due to greenhouse gasses and airplane contrails. Electricity can be generated in clean, efficient, stationary power sources. Hydrogen has some of the same good features of electricity, but it can be hard to transport and store, and fuel cells are, and probably will be, terribly expensive.

Even if all ground vehicles were converted to electricity, ‘refueling’ them would be a problem. Current battery and ultracapacitor technology still limits vehicle range to about 250 miles, and recharging might take too much time. Also, electric vehicles would have some of the same inefficiencies as current vehicles, due to rolling resistance and aerodynamic drag. We probably would need a giant leap of technology to power aircraft by electricity.

Magnetic Levitation (MagLev) rail provides a virtually frictionless way to transport people and goods at high speeds of 300 mph (480 km/h) or more, and can work completely on electricity. Its high speed can make it competitive with air transport, except for over-water routes where it is prohibitively expensive to build rails.

We can start with the “RobotRail” MagLev system for freight, having individual robotic vehicles, each carrying one container. It would be carried a few miles by tractor-trailer to the MagLev station, and then travel at about 325 mph, non-stop and directly to another station, where it is hauled away by another tractor-trailer. This would mean a lot fewer tractor-trailers on the highways (although would still be used for local pick-up and delivery), and would also displace some air freight, also reducing contrails, which contribute to global warming.

MagLev vehicles can travel in magnetically-linked “convoys” to reduce air resistance. MagLev lines can be elevated, reducing the environmental impact on the ground. Existing highway rights-of-way can be used. Also, long-distance electric-power lines can be incorporated into its rails.

As RobotRail is continually used for unmanned vehicles, its scheduling and safety algorithms can be perfected. At some point, large- and medium-sized passenger vehicles can be added, these being like busses and vans.

Soon after, “LeviCars” can be introduced. These are modular cars, each with a car body for passengers and luggage, and a separable chassis with the motors, power storage, wheels, and steering. They work similarly to RobotRail, except that they are slightly slower – only 300 mph. While riding on the MagLev network, each car body is mounted on a “bogie”. When arriving at its destination station, it is remounted on another chassis similar to the one left behind at the first station.

This will be simpler if the chassis are leased to the consumer. The lease price could also include the cost of basic maintenance, and servicing the chassis is as simple as exchanging the ‘old’ chassis for a ‘new’ one. The ‘old’ one will be repaired, and then given to another customer. If you can’t bring the car into the shop, a truck can come around and swap the chassis in your driveway, or wherever you happen to be. Early chassis could be conventionally powered, but later they can be converted to all-electric drive.

It would be irresponsible to introduce such a large technological change without considering the social, economic, and even political ramifications. Yes, LeviCar will eliminate many jobs, and those so displaced will be offered training and alternative employment. Existing automobile and airplane manufacturers would reconvert to make parts of the RobotRail and LeviCar systems.

RobotRail and LeviCar will give us a safer and cleaner transportation system. This is a win-win for America, Western Civilization, and the World!

Earth Lovers

Short Version

All-Electric Transportation System

Current transportation systems are highly dependent on petroleum-derived liquid fuels. We are addicted to oil – much of it from unstable foreign regions. Burning this fuel also contributes to pollution and global warming. Electricity can be generated in clean, efficient, stationary power sources.

Magnetic Levitation (MagLev) rail provides a high-efficiency, high-speed, electric-powered transportation system that can compete with air transport for door-to-door speed. Using elevated rails will minimize ground impact.

Let’s start by building a MagLev network for freight (“RobotRail”). Tractor-trailers would carry the freight containers for the first and last few miles, but, in between, they would travel on MagLev bogies, at 325 mph, directly and non-stop from the source to destination stations.

Similarly, “LeviCar” will use modular passenger cars, with a car body for passengers and luggage, usually mounted on a separable leased chassis with the motors, power storage, and wheels. On MagLev rails, it will travel at 300 mph. Servicing the chassis is as simple as exchanging the ‘old’ chassis for a ‘new’ one. The ‘old’ one will be repaired and given to another customer by the leasing company.

“LeviCar” will cause a lot of social economic displacement. Existing automobile and airplane manufacturers would reconvert to make parts of the LeviCar system, and displaced workers will be retrained and offered alternative jobs.

However, the advantages of cleaner, safer, greener transportation will make this a win-win for America, Western Civilization, and the World!

Earth Lovers

Summary

All-Electric Transportation System

Current transportation systems are highly dependent on petroleum-derived liquid fuels. Burning this fuel contributes to pollution and global warming. We are addicted to oil – much of it from unstable foreign regions.

“RobotRail” will carry freight on MagLev rails, except for the first and last few miles. Likewise, “LeviCar” will do this with a car body mounted a separable leased chassis, providing clean, safe, and convenient personalized transportation.

Convenient and Safe Transportation

Are you tired of the hassles of running a car, with all the preventive maintenance, occasional breakdowns, and expensive gasoline? Do you hate it when you have to bring the car “into the shop” and leave it there for a while, and rely on friends or taxis to take you around until it's fixed? Do you enjoy sharing the highways with big trucks?

Are you also tired of the hassles of air travel, with the need to pack light, the rush to get to the airport on time, the expense of parking or of airport taxis or limos, the security inspections, the waiting around the terminal when there are flight delays, and the lost luggage?

There can be an alternative, but it will be a while before it's available. The “LeviCar” system will use modular cars. You can own your car body, and this can be your mini home on the go. For driving on the road, it will be mounted on a leased detachable chassis that has the wheels and motors. If anything does goes wrong with the chassis, rather than repairing it, you can just exchange it for a good one. The leasing company will then get the old chassis repaired, and then give it to another customer. The cost of ordinary maintenance will be included in the lease. You might not even have to bring the car into the shop – a truck could come by and exchange the chassis in your own driveway, or wherever you happen to be.

When going long distances, you don't have to go all the way to the airport and deal with parking and the other hassles. You’ll pack up your car for the trip, and drive it to a local station, which should be not more than ten miles or so from you if you live in a city or suburb. Your car's body will be detached from the chassis, and be placed on a Magnetic-Levitation (MagLev) rail. You (and your family or other traveling companions), with all your luggage, then travel non-stop on the MagLev network at 300 mph to another station near your destination. You don’t drive the distance – the system does everything automatically. Your car body will then be mounted on another chassis, equivalent to the one you left at the first station, and you drive no more than ten miles to your final destination. No changing vehicles, no lugging luggage through terminals, and no getting used to driving a strange rental car at 10:30 p.m.

In addition to all these benefits, “LeviCar” will be more efficient and greener than what we have today. The MagLev network can initially be built to handle freight, and meaning far fewer big rigs on the highway, and a lot less pollution. As this “RobotRail” freight network is perfected for safety, human passengers can be added, and eventually LeviCars. All these new systems would work off of electricity, which can be generated in low-pollution, high-efficiency, stationary power sources. There would be vastly less carbon dioxide and other pollutants, and fewer airplane condensation trails (contrails) in the sky, and less global warming.

It would be irresponsible to introduce such a large technological change without considering the social, economic, and even political ramifications. Yes, LeviCar will eliminate many jobs, and those so displaced will be offered training and alternative employment. Existing automobile and airplane manufacturers would also make parts of the RobotRail and LeviCar systems.

We are addicted to foreign oil. RobotRail and LeviCar will replace much of our oil-dependent transportation system with clean electricity, and make us not so dependent on oil from unstable regions. This is a win-win for America, Western Civilization, and the World!

Non-Technical People

Short Version

Convenient and Safe Transportation

With “LeviCar,” you’ll have a virtually maintenance-free modular automobile that can also get you to many distant places faster than airplanes. Most repairs can be done by exchanging the detachable chassis (with the wheels and motors) for a good one. Your leasing company will repair the old chassis, and later give it to another customer, with the cost of maintenance included in the lease.

No more air-travel hassles for going long distances: packing light, rushing to the airport, parking, security inspections, waiting, and lost luggage. You can pack your car for the trip, and drive no more than ten miles to a local station. Your car's body will be placed on a Magnetic-Levitation (MagLev) rail, and you then travel, automatically and non-stop, on the MagLev network at 300 mph to another station. Your car body will then be remounted on another chassis like the one you left at the first station, and you drive no more than ten miles to your final destination.

“LeviCar” will displace current inefficient, highly-polluting, oil-dependent vehicles. It will run off of electricity from clean, efficient generators – reducing pollutants and greenhouse gases. Existing automobile and airplane manufacturers would reconvert to make parts of the LeviCar system, and displaced workers will be retrained and offered alternative jobs. LeviCar will also alleviate our addiction to foreign oil from unstable regions. This is a win-win for America, Western Civilization, and the World!

Non-Technical People

Summary

Convenient and Safe Transportation

“LeviCar” will provide almost maintenance-free modular automobiles that can also get you to many distant places, door-to-door faster than airplanes, via MagLev rails. Most repairs can be done by exchanging the detachable leased chassis for a good one, while you keep your car body, with maintenance costs included in the lease price. For long-distance travel, you pack your car, not your bags, because the car body will travel with you.

It will also vastly reduce pollutants and greenhouse gases, and alleviate our addiction to foreign oil from unstable regions.

Intro:

“LeviCar” will provide almost maintenance-free modular automobiles that can also get you to many distant places, door-to-door, faster than airplanes, with single-vehicle convenience. Its electric power means less pollution, and no oil addiction.

The Promise of Energy Independence

The United States is addicted to foreign oil – much of it from unstable foreign regions, affecting our foreign policy, and making America a debtor nation. Burning it produces pollution and greenhouse gasses, causing global warming, with its future economic dislocations.

The transportation sector is highly dependent on petroleum-derived liquid fuels – gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel. We can ease this dependence, somewhat, by increased use of biomass fuel, and increased efficiency with technologies like hybrids and hydrogen. However, simple electricity is better than any of these. It can be generated in clean, efficient, stationary power sources from a variety of different fuels, and non-fuels such as wind and solar. Electric transportation is the ticket to energy independence, for us, and for other large countries.

“LeviCar” will replace a large portion of our oil-guzzling transportation infrastructure with a unified network of virtually-frictionless Magnetic-Levitation (MagLev) rails. It will provide efficient, high-speed, customized transportation, powered by electricity. The high speed makes MagLev competitive with jet planes for overland distances up to about 1250 miles (2000 km) – which is important because you can’t really power an airplane just by electricity.

We can start with “RobotRail”, a system transporting freight containers on a MagLev rail network. Each container will travel automatically at over 300 mph (480 km/h), non-stop and directly from a warehouse or a MagLev station to another station, from where transported by tractor-trailer to its destination. MagLev vehicles can travel in magnetically-linked “convoys” to reduce air resistance.

As RobotRail is continually used for unmanned vehicles, its scheduling and safety algorithms can be perfected, until passenger-carrying modular LeviCars will be allowed. Each will have a car body, and a separable leased road chassis with the motors and wheels. The car can be driven to a local station, where its body will be removed from the chassis and then travel on the MagLev network to its destination station, remounted on another chassis similar to the one left behind at the first station, and then driven to its final destination.

The lease price could include basic maintenance. Servicing the chassis is as simple as exchanging the chassis, with the leasing company, for a newly-repaired one. This can be done at a repair shop, in your driveway, or wherever you happen to be on the road.

Government-backed bonds would be needed to jump-start construction of the RobotRail network. The revenue from each phase will finance construction of the next, since RobotRail will have surplus profits because it will be more efficient and faster than its competition. Likewise, LeviCar will be more efficient than our current system of automobiles that need frequent maintenance.

RobotRail and LeviCar will, of course, create tremendous social and economic dislocations. Whole industries would be transformed, and a lot of capital equipment would lose its value. LeviCar would replace overland air travel of 1250 miles or shorter. We will need to have a planned “reconversion”. Retraining of displaced workers will make them available to work on constructing or operating these new systems and their equipment. Existing automobile and airplane manufacturers would also make parts of the RobotRail and LeviCar systems.

We’ll need the government to provide a favorable regulatory environment that will evolve with time, as the systems grow and mature. It is expected that RobotRail tariffs will start out being competitive with current ground and air freight, and then decline as the bonds to build the network are paid off. LeviCars will initially be somewhat more expensive than regular automobiles, being luxury items and status symbols, but, as production increases, the prices will decrease.

RobotRail and LeviCar will give us a safer and cleaner transportation system. This is a win-win for America, Western Civilization, and the World!

Policy / Economics

Short Version

The Promise of Energy Independence

We are addicted to foreign oil – largely from unstable foreign regions, affecting our foreign policy and making us a debtor nation. Burning it produces pollution and greenhouse gasses, causing global warming, with its future economic dislocations. Transportation is a major offender. Biomass fuel, hybrids, and hydrogen can help – but simple electricity is much better. It can be generated in clean, efficient, stationary power sources, including wind, tides, solar, etc.

“LeviCar” will replace a large portion of our oil-guzzling transportation infrastructure with a unified network of virtually-frictionless electric-powered Magnetic-Levitation (MagLev) rails, providing efficient, customized transportation. Its high speed will make it competitive with jet planes.

We can first build the “RobotRail” freight network, transporting containers, automatically, non-stop, and directly from a warehouse or a MagLev station to another station. As RobotRail is perfected and its safety proved, passenger-carrying modular LeviCars will be added. Each will have a car body, and a separable leased road chassis, that will be left behind for travel on the MagLev network, and replaced with an equivalent one at the destination station. The car can be driven to its final destination.

Existing automobile and airplane manufacturers would also make parts of these new systems, and displaced workers will be retrained to work on constructing or operating them. We’ll also need a favorable regulatory environment that will evolve as systems mature.

This is a win-win for America, Western Civilization, and the World!

Policy / Economics

Summary

The Promise of Energy Independence

Our transportation system is too dependent on foreign oil, affecting our foreign policy, making us a debtor nation, and causing pollution and global warming, with its future economic dislocations.

“LeviCar” will replace a large portion of our oil-guzzling transportation infrastructure with a unified network of virtually-frictionless electric-powered Magnetic-Levitation (MagLev) rails, providing efficient, customized transportation. Its high speed will make it competitive with jets.

Existing automobile and airplane manufacturers would also make the components of LeviCar, and displaced workers will be retrained to work on constructing or operating them.

Intro:

We can break our addiction to foreign oil by using electric transportation. “LeviCar” will use MagLev with individually-routed vehicles under computer control, going non-stop between stations, to provide customized transport for passengers and freight.

Flash:

“LeviCar” will free us from foreign oil, using MagLev for fast, individualized travel.